Your Next Draft
Alice Sudlow
Recent Episodes
This is often overlooked, but it’s essential for great stories.
How do you make time pass?
Well, when you’re living your regular life in the real world, you don’t have to do anything.
Time is constantly passing, no matter what you do. And when a timer goes off, or you look outside and see the sun’s gone down, or you feel your stomach growl with hunger, you notice time has passed.
You hardly have to think about it. It’s just happening, all around you, all the time.
In your novel, though—well, there, you are responsible for charting the passage of time. You are the filter who determines how time passes.
More than that, you are responsible for telling your readers how much time is going by.
It’s an essential part of storytelling, and yet it’s often overlooked. So in this episode, we’re talking about time.
You’ll learn:
- Why writers often forget to mention time passing
- 3 ways you can use time passing to enhance your story
- What happens when you don’t show how time is passing in your story
- 2 kinds of tension you can create using time
- And more!
I’ve read so many manuscripts where I lose track of time and have to ask the writer, “Wait, when does this happen?” Check out this episode and save yourself from this common oversight.
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Write your best stories—and know when to let go and publish them.
In order to write great books, you first have to learn how to write great books.
But when it comes to writing, there’s always something more to learn.
So how do you know when to practice your writing skills—and more importantly, when to publish the stories you’re creating?
That’s what I’m talking about in this episode.
In it, you’ll learn:
- 2 benefits and 1 danger of spending focused time learning new writing skills
- The joy—and risk!—of publishing using the skills you already have
- How to leverage the benefits of both learning and publishing in your writing
- A self-assessment quiz to see what you should focus on next
- And more!
So are you practicing or publishing? There’s no right or wrong answer. It’s just a question of which approach is best for you, right now.
Check out the episode and find out!
Links mentioned in the episode:
Want more editing tips and resources? Follow me on Instagram and Facebook.
And if you're enjoying the podcast, would you mind leaving a rating and review on Apple Podcasts? That helps more writers find these editing resources. And it helps me know what's helpful to you so I can create more episodes you'll love!
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Before you can master writing great stories, you have to learn to craft great stories.
When I was fifteen, I got my learner’s permit and began learning how to drive a car.
This made me very unhappy.
See, I wanted to know how to drive a car. I didn’t want to learn to drive a car.
Knowing how to drive a car was fun, freeing, and exciting. Learning to drive a car was dangerous, tedious, dangerous, difficult, and also dangerous.
Writers, I find, feel the same way about writing great books.
Writers want to write great books. They don’t want to learn how to write great books.
The stakes aren’t life or death. But the sentiment is the same.
And just like fifteen-year-old me, writers face an uncomfortable truth:
You can’t skip the learning stage of skill development. If you want to write great books, you have to spend time learning to write great books.
In this episode, I’m digging into what it really takes to learn the skill of writing great books—and how to know when you’ve mastered it.
You’ll learn:
- The 2 stages of skill development I see in writers
- Why you just can’t skip the learning stage (no matter how much we all want to!)
- 3 features of the learning stage (yes, features, not bugs!)
- And more!
The amazing book you want to craft is on the other side of the learning stage.
Check out the episode and build the skills that empower you to write it.
Want more editing tips and resources? Follow me on Instagram and Facebook.
And if you're enjoying the podcast, would you mind leaving a rating and review on Apple Podcasts? That helps more writers find these editing resources. And it helps me know what's helpful to you so I can create more episodes you'll love!
Loving the show? Show your support with a monthly contribution »
Because working with an editor should be delightful, not scary.
Let's be honest. When you start working with an editor for the first time, it can feel a little scary.
You’re sharing your manuscript, the project you’ve worked so hard on, with a stranger on the internet. You’re inviting another person into a process that up until now has been entirely solo.
And you’re entering an industry of professionals that’s probably entirely new to you. What should you expect? And what’s expected of you?
In this episode, I’m demystifying what it’s like to work with an editor. I’m sharing four tips to help you make the most of your time with your editor—even (or especially!) if you’ve never worked with an editor before.
You’ll learn:
- What NOT to do while you wait for your editor’s feedback
- 10+ things you CAN (and maybe should!) do while you wait
- What to do AFTER you get your feedback to move forward with clarity and confidence
- And more!
Your work with your developmental editor can be one of the most rewarding creative partnerships you’ll ever experience. That may sound hyperbolic, but it’s 100% true.
The first step is simply knowing what to expect. And that’s what you’ll learn in this episode.
Links mentioned in the episode:
- Check out my manuscript wishlist: alicesudlow.com/wishlist
- Want me to edit your book? Tell me about your book here: alicesudlow.com/contact
- Ep. 66: 4 Tips to Find the Right Editor for Your Novel
Want more editing tips and resources? Follow me on Instagram and Facebook.
And if you're enjoying the podcast, would you mind leaving a rating and review on Apple Podcasts? That helps more writers find these editing resources. And it helps me know what's helpful to you so I can create more episodes you'll love!
Loving the show? Show your support with a monthly contribution »
What you need to know BEFORE you start working with an editor—and how to tell if they’re the right fit for your novel.
Working with a developmental editor can be the most rewarding part of your editing process.
But if you’ve never worked with an editor before, it can also be . . . intimidating. Confusing. Scary.
After all, you’ve got to hand your manuscript that you’ve worked so hard on to a stranger on the internet and hope their feedback will be helpful and not soul-crushing.
If you’ve ever wondered how to find the right editor for your book—
—or maybe you’ve worked with an editor before, and it wasn’t a great experience—
—then this episode is for you. In it, I’m sharing my top tips to find the right editor for your novel.
You’ll learn:
- What you should know BEFORE you start looking for an editor
- 6 criteria to vet editors to see whether they’re the right fit for you
- 5 questions to ask to make sure you and your editor are on the same page
- And more!
When you find the right editor for your book, the developmental editing process can be so incredibly rewarding. My coaching clients often tell me that the hour we spend together on calls is their favorite hour of the week.
But if you don’t know how any of this works, you might feel a little lost. So let’s make it a little clearer and easier, shall we?
And if you’d like to see if I’m the right editor for your novel, let’s talk!
Go here to check out my manuscript wishlist and see whether I’m a good fit for your
story.
And go here to reach out and tell me about your book!
Links mentioned in the episode:
- Check out my manuscript wishlist: alicesudlow.com/wishlist
- Work with me: alicesudlow.com/contact
Want more editing tips and resources? Follow me on Instagram and Facebook.
And if you're enjoying the podcast, would you mind leaving a rating and review on Apple Podcasts? That helps more writers find these editing resources. And it helps me know what's helpful to you so I can create more episodes you'll love!
Loving the show? Show your support with a monthly contribution »